The 1952 British expedition to Cho Oyu (26,750 feet (8,150 m)) the Turquoise Goddess was organized by the Joint Himalayan Committee. It had been hoped to follow up the 1951 Everest expedition with another British attempt on Everest in 1952, but Nepal had accepted a Swiss application for 1952, to be followed in 1953 with a British attempt. So in 1952, Eric Shipton was to lead an attempt to ascend Cho Oyu, and Griffith Pugh was to trial oxygen equipment and train members for 1953. But the expedition failed both aims; that plus Shipton’s poor leadership and planning resulted in his replacement as a leader for the 1953 expedition.[1]
The expedition members were Eric Shipton, Charles Evans, Tom Bourdillon, Ray Colledge, Alfred Gregory and Griffith Pugh (UK); from NZ Ed Hillary, George Lowe and Earle Riddiford, and from Canada Campbell Secord[2] (Michael Ward was not available as he was completing his national military service and sitting a surgery examination[3]). The expedition sailed on 7 March from Southampton; except for Shipton, Pugh and Secord who flew out later.[4]
The New Zealand Alpine Club (NZAC) provided financial support, though because of sponsorship by The Times other newspaper articles could not be published until a month afterwards.[5] Riddiford ate and tented with the British members because of his dispute with Lowe in Ranikhet when he was selected for the 1951 British Mount Everest reconnaissance expedition instead of Lowe (who did not have the money to pay his share of the costs)[6]
- ^ McKinnon 2016, p. 147.
- ^ Evans, R.C. (1953). "The Cho Oyu Expedition 1952" (PDF). Alpine Journal. #59: 9–18. ISSN 0065-6569. Retrieved 26 June 2024.
- ^ Gill 2017, p. 158.
- ^ McKinnon 2016, p. 309.
- ^ McKinnon 2016, p. 122.
- ^ McKinnon 2016, p. 145.